The Nice: Two Thirds Nice
Interview by Miles, International Times, April 1969
This interview is transcribed from a tape recorded conversation done at my house in Westminster. It has been edited for grammer and coherence only. Lee Jackson, ...

The Nice: Ars Longa Vita Brevis (Immediate)
Review by John Mendelsohn, Rolling Stone, June 1969
WHAT MAY HAVE turned potential Nice freaks off last year was the group's decision to precede their ritual cataclysm 'Rondo' with a set that consisted almost ...

Yes: Yes (Atlantic)
Review by Mark Williams, Rolling Stone, July 1969
THE BRITISH END of the Atlantic Recording Company's operations rarely signs up this country's groups and when it does, they have to be exceedingly good to ...

King Crimson: In the Court of the Crimson King
Review by John Morthland, Rolling Stone, December 1969
THERE ARE CERTAIN problems to be encountered by any band that is consciously avant-garde. In attempting to sound "farout" the musicians inevitably impose on themselves restrictions ...

Colosseum: Farlowe That!
Report and Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, September 1970
CHRIS FARLOWE and Colosseum – the mind boggles! One of the country's most powerful vocal talents has joined the most explosive force in groups to form ...

Caravan Do It All Over Again
Report and Interview by uncredited writer, Beat Instrumental, October 1970
ONE OF THE more interesting events of last year, away from the resurgence of rock ‘n’ roll in all shapes and sizes, was the first album ...

Colosseum: The Secret Of Their Success – Good Music
Profile and Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, November 1970
COLOSSEUM are now rated as one of Britain's and Europe's most popular and creative bands. In two years of furious activity and hard work, the band ...

McDonald & Giles: Outside The Court Of The Crimson King
Interview by Richard Williams, Melody Maker, November 1970
THERE ARE, YOU understand, these two musicians, both having played in one of our very best bands, who're sitting at home doing virtually nothing at all. ...

Black Widow
Interview by uncredited writer, Beat Instrumental, December 1970
THE LAST FEW months have seen the emergence of one or two bands whose publicity and stage act seem to be based on – not Meher ...

ELP Is On The Way…
Report and Interview by Keith Altham, Record Mirror, March 1971
DESPITE PROTESTATIONS to the contrary, there is no such thing as an instant group – super or otherwise – and ELP are a testimony to the ...

Emerson, Lake & Palmer: Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Review by Loyd Grossman, Rolling Stone, April 1971
WE WERE FOREWARNED by the British music press that Emerson, Lake & Palmer would be a "super-group," and indeed it was hard to see how they ...

King Crimson Take To The Road!
Interview by Caroline Boucher, Disc and Music Echo, May 1971
IT'S HARDLY surprising that King Crimson are scared stiff at the prospect of their first British gig, for it will be the first time they've set ...

Van Der Graaf Generator: The Generator Are Staying Very Content On The Continent
Interview by Keith Altham, Record Mirror, May 1971
PERHAPS THE most obvious band of our times are Van der Graaf Generator who without any publicity hype – hit single or ballyhoo – have calmly ...

Rick Wakeman: Just Another Yes Man
Report and Interview by Penny Valentine, Sounds, August 1971
WHEN HE was six years old, Rick Wakeman's father dispatched him to a very fine lady piano teacher in Harrow. Two lessons later the infant Wakeman ...

King Crimson: Reshuffle At The Court Of The King
Interview by Andrew Tyler, Disc and Music Echo, January 1972
"WE'VE ALL gone through our various changes and Peter and I came out at different places." ...

Yes: Chris Squire
Interview by David Hughes, Disc and Music Echo, January 1972
THE YES you should be seeing this Friday and Saturday at London's Rainbow Theatre promises to be a very different Yes from any you have seen ...

A Little Rift In Curved Air?
Interview by Keith Altham, Record Mirror, February 1972
IT WAS SCOTT Fitzgerald who held to the theory that the test of a first rate intelligence was to hold two opposed ideas in the mind ...

Emerson Lake and Palmer: Why Keith Wants To Become Immortal
Interview by Caroline Boucher, Disc and Music Echo, May 1972
KEITH EMERSON would like to be remembered as a twentieth century composer – he thinks about it quite a lot and finds it curious that a ...

Yes: Yes are Well and Grooving
Profile and Interview by Andrew Tyler, Disc and Music Echo, May 1972
IN THE basement of Una Billings School of Dancing, Shepherd's Bush, London, Yes are bouncing ideas off each other for a new album. Jon Anderson, their ...

Jethro Tull: Thick As A Brick
Review by John Swenson, Crawdaddy!, August 1972
THE NEW Tull package is clever, very, and complicated enough to sustain interest over an extended series of listenings. Most albums can be assimilated in five ...

Wishbone Ash: Argus
Review by Richard Cromelin, Rolling Stone, August 1972
OF THE SCADS of similarities between Wishbone Ash and Yes, the most trivial and accidental (and so most interesting) is the fact that both groups have ...

Emerson Lake And Palmer: Super-Group Of The Seventies!
Profile and Interview by Keith Altham, Petticoat, November 1972
EMERSON LAKE and Palmer may not be three names which are immediately known to you but to millions of progressive rock music fans across the World ...

King Crimson: Rainbow Theatre, London
Live Review by Ian MacDonald, NME, 1973
IT'S A ROCK concert evening and the stalls are filling to the accompaniment of music played over the public address system. A review-functionary takes his seat. ...

Jan Akkerman: A Poor Relation Comes Good
Interview by Tony Stewart, NME, February 1973
IN A SMALL OFFICE at the Manchester Hardrock, reeking of stale beer and dirty ashtrays, Jan Akkerman is struggling to light a cigarette. Outside, where half ...

Flash: Flash; Badger: One Live Badger
Review by Chris Salewicz, Let It Rock, April 1973
"DIFFERENCES in musical policy" is the standard euphemism whenever a member quits a band, or, as is more often the case, gets the boot. Yes and ...

Focus: How to Make It Without Playing Top 40
Interview by Harold Bronson, Rolling Stone, May 1973
LOS ANGELES – "'Hocus Pocus' was done as a parody of rock," said Thijs van Leer, founder of Focus, commenting on his group's hit record. ...

King Crimson: Latest Shade of Crimson
Interview by Ian MacDonald, NME, August 1973
SOME REPORTS from America suggested that King Crimson's recent tour had bombed completely. Others maintained that everything had gone according to plot and that audience reactions ...

Yes: Keep 'Em Yessing
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, August 1973
"YES ARE LIKE an amoeba. Now an amoeba works on the principle of..do you know, I've no idea how it f***** works!" Jon Anderson grinned, apologised ...

King Crimson: Robert Fripp…Super Stud?
Interview by Richard Williams, Melody Maker, August 1973
"I AM," MUSES Robert Fripp, "already a living legend."

The light breeze ruffles his curly locks. He settles back in the plastic garden chair, sips his lukewarm ...

Yes: Yes Men On Top
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, September 1973
FLUSHED from their success in the MM Pop Poll, the all-star musicians of Yes held a remarkable summit conference this week. Gathered round the board room ...

Genesis: Selling England By the Pound (Charisma)
Review by Barbara Charone, NME, September 1973
GENESIS FANS unite, stand proud and be counted; get ready to say 'I told you so' to all those people who have been doubting your praise ...

Yes: Rainbow Theatre, London
Live Review by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, December 1973
A DISTURBING night for a Yes fan at London's Rainbow, when the group unveiled their new work Tales From Topographic Oceans. For despite, the applause that ...

Yes: Tales From Topographic Oceans (Atlantic)
Review by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, December 1973
CHANTING VOICES lead us into 'The Revealing Science Of God', and the marathon Yes epic that has occupied so much of their time throughout the summer ...

Genesis: Drury Lane Theatre, London
Live Review by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, January 1974
GENESIS'S WEEK at London's Drury Lane Theatre, proved that rock and theatre can mix and have a validity outside of mere exhibitionism. The band arc currently ...

Rick Wakeman: Festival Hall, London
Live Review by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, January 1974
SHEER ENTERTAINMENT, that was Rick Wakeman's highly successful solo concert at London's Festival Hall on Friday last week. Rick, the keyboard whizz of Yes, brought laughter, ...

Yes
Essay by Dave Laing, Let It Rock, February 1974
IF IT HADN'T been for Sgt Pepper, Paramhansa Yogananda would never have become part of the rock tradition. ...

Yes: Yes Please!
Profile and Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, February 1974
AS YES PLAY one of the most prestigious concerts in their career, at Madison Square Garden, New York, this week both their British and American fans ...

Genesis: No 'Pale' Imitation
Profile and Interview by John Swenson, Crawdaddy!, March 1974
Genesis combines surreal songwriting with an interesting instrumental and visual approach. Lead singer Peter Gabriel notes: "We all took courses in pretentiousness." ...

Yes: America roars YES!
Report by Chris Charlesworth, Melody Maker, March 1974
Rick Wakeman said it: the MM's Yes concert at Madison Square Garden was the best yet. ...

Focus: Changing Focus
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, March 1974
FOCUS HAVE been through some changes in recent months, and happily for fans of this Dutch band with an international reputation for fine music – they ...

Rick Wakeman: British Groups Have Gone Over The Top
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, April 1974
The American tour was the last of the long ones ...

Rick Wakeman: Journey To The Centre Of The Earth
Review by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, April 1974
IN CLASSICAL music terms, this composition might be described as "lightweight" or of "little consequence." But as far as popular music is concerned, Rick's composition for ...

Yes, 5,000 Frenchmen Can't Be Wrong!
Report and Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, April 1974
"I HEAR we're playing the next gig in My-Rand," said Rick Wakeman, leaning heavily on the bar in the George Cinque Hotel. ...

King Crimson’s Robert Fripp
Interview by Steven Rosen, Guitar Player, May 1974
ROBERT FRIPP, lead guitarist with English rock King Crimson, conspicuous personality by appearing inconspicuous. Rather than stand when performing, he perches himself on a stool, and ...

Stomu Yamash'ta: He Say "Not Really"
Interview by Chris Salewicz, NME, June 1974
A VERY CURIOUS thing happened to me about 15 months ago. There I was, coming on home about two o'clock one Saturday morning feeling a little...well, ...

Emerson Lake and Palmer: England's Robbing Us!
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, July 1974
WHEN THE alarm bells ring at "Whyte Eagles," it's not a warning of imminent fire or pestilence, just a reminder to Carl Palmer to turn over ...

Greg Lake: Rock Will Go Back To Its Roots
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, August 1974
GREG LAKE'S London home is a rare and impressive sight. A light glows outside a town house in a quiet street that takes you back to ...

Yes: I'm Not Jumping Into Wakeman's Boots…It Will Be Different
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, August 1974
"THE TEXTURES are so rich...and they work so fast..." Patrick Moraz slipped a sidelong glance across the top of an amphitheatre of keyboards, a mixture of ...

Mike Oldfield: High On The Ridge
Report and Interview by Karl Dallas, Melody Maker, August 1974
Toy gliders, house-hunting and a jam with a harpsichordist in a restaurant. It's all happening on the Welsh Marches where Karl Dallas meets Mike Oldfield. ...

Greg Lake
Interview by Steven Rosen, Guitar Player, September 1974
GREG LAKE IS the surrounded L in ELP, the British trio which has brought to the forefront the power of classical music in a rock format. ...

Genesis: The New Face Of Gabriel
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, October 1974
Don't lose hope, Genesis fans! Their tour may be cancelled, but there's a new album on the way. And the new-look Peter Gabriel has given Chris ...

Genesis: The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway (Charisma)
Review by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, November 1974
I WISH that rock musicians would learn the importance of self-editing. A few golden, miraculous notes, and some choice pithy words are worth all the clutter ...

Argent Delivery
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, November 1974
ROD ARGENT is a nice chap. Not one of your violent illiterates of rock prone to throwing pints of Guinness over the heads of passers-by, or ...

Yes: Relayer (Atlantic)
Review by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, December 1974
Chris Squire (bass guitar), Jon Anderson (vocals), Patrick Moraz (keyboards), Steve Howe (guitar), Alan White (drums), Produced by Yes and Eddie Offord. Recorded on Eddie Offord's ...

P.F.M.: Cook
Review by Fred Dellar, NME, January 1975
HERE'S A NICE fresh pizza, straight from our favourite Italian baking firm, manufactured live and steaming at gigs in Toronto and New York, last ...

Gentle Giant: Santa Monica Civic, Los Angeles
Live Review by Anne Moore, LA Free Press, February 1975
AFTER SIX ALBUMS and three national tours, Gentle Giant has finally made it to headline concert status. Sure, they played the Whisky to sell-out crowds but ...

Yes: Yesterdays (Atlantic)
Review by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, March 1975
Recordings between 1969-1971 including material from Yes and Time And A Word. ...

Genesis: Gabriel's Cosmic Juice
Report and Interview by Max Bell, NME, March 1975
"I believe in getting art out of the galleries and onto the streets. Status Quo are so cultural, so Wagner..." ...

Rick Wakeman: The Myths And Legends Of King Arthur And The Knights Of The Round Table
Review by Ian MacDonald, NME, April 1975
The Cadbury capers, part 1: the management requests you leave your brain at the door ...

Jan Akkerman: Dutch Treat
Interview by Steven Rosen, Guitar Player, May 1975
JAN AKKERMAN, lead guitarist of Focus, represents the new breed of European guitarists so long invisible under the veil of the English players. Where the islander ...

Rick Wakeman: The Myths And Legends Of King Arthur And The Knights Of The Round Table
Review by Tom Nolan, Phonograph Record, May 1975
I ONCE VAGUELY planned a toney essay, to be modeled on Susan Sontag's ground-breaker, on the grotesque changes rung on the concept of Camp once it ...

Yes
Report and Interview by Chris Salewicz, NME, June 1975
There is no mention of brown rice on this page. Persian rugs and health food in general? Well, OK...yeah, but not in any harmful quantity. There ...

Jon Hiseman: Why I've Re-formed Colosseum
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, July 1975
DRUMS HAVE BEEN rumbling down in darkest South London, underneath the railway arches. Drums and guitars competing with the rumble of trains overhead, and grim determination ...

Rick Wakeman: Liszten To Rick!
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, August 1975
Lisztomania is quite a movie, says Rick Wakeman. He plays Thor in the film, as well as producing the music, and he tells Chris Welch about ...

Genesis to Revelation
Obituary by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, August 1975
AS PETER GABRIEL QUITS GENESIS, CHRIS WELCH RECALLS A GREAT BRITISH BAND ...

Peter Gabriel Quits Genesis
Report and Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, August 1975
THE MELODY MAKER last week front-paged the growing doubts about Gabriel's future in the band. Reports, denied by the management of Genesis, indicated that Gabriel was ...

Pink Floyd: Walters, Gilmour, Wright and Mason RIBA
Essay by Idris Walters, Let It Rock, September 1975
99. THERE ARE only three interesting things about Stevenage New Town. One is that there is a Museum there. (!) A Museum? Another is that Stevenage ...

Genesis
Profile and Interview by Barbara Charone, ZigZag, October 1975
"I THINK SOME PEOPLE have a rip-off concept of us," Peter Gabriel remarked with a touch of cynicism as if he'd just had a revelation. ...

Pavlov's Dog: Walking The Dog
Report and Interview by Max Bell, NME, December 1975
WANT TO HEAR a shaggy dog story? O.K. Once upon a time there was a completely unknown band who were so exciting that ABC Records magnanimously ...

The Ghost That Haunts Genesis
Report and Interview by Harry Doherty, Melody Maker, February 1976
YES, PETER IS PAST, but the legacy remains. And Tony Banks, keyboards' player with Genesis, is finding it difficult to swallow that. Peter Gabriel has quit ...

Alan White: Ramshackled (Atlantic) ***
Review by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, February 1976
THIRD IN the series and I'll lay odds there's not going to be another Yes solo that sounds less like the parent band. ...

National Health: LSE, London
Live Review by Miles, NME, February 1976
I LIKE GOING to concerts at L.S.E. because the audiences there are such fanatics. Such was the case with National Health, the audience being exceedingly knowledgeable ...

Rick Wakeman
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, March 1976
"I'M SURE YOU were all as surprised as I was to find that Rick wasn't here, when we arrived tonight..." Brian Lane, manager, smiled uneasily through ...

Patrick Moraz: Moraz Pazazz
Interview by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, April 1976
IT WAS A MONDAY like that. My train back to the big city was late so I was late for my interview with Patrick Moraz and ...

Camel: Moonmadness (Decca)
Review by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, April 1976
IF YOU were haunted by the cry of the Snowgoose last year, and cheered by the success of Camel in the MM's Readers' Poll (they were ...

Camel Over The Moon
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, April 1976
WHEN CAMEL became the MM's Brightest Hope in last year's Poll, it caused organist Peter Bardens a wry smile because he had become "an overnight success ...

National Health: Carrying The Flag Close To The Edge
Interview by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, April 1976
"THERE'S NO way of encapsulating higher ideas except by some kind of artistic experience," stated Mont Campbell, ex-Egg, current National Health, with fervent sobriety. ...

Rick Wakeman and the English Rock Ensemble: No Earthly Connection (A&M)****
Review by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, April 1976
HERE WE are again and I'm not at all sure that reviewing an album twice is a good idea even if first time round was on ...

Genesis: Beacon Theatre, New York
Live Review by Chris Charlesworth, Melody Maker, April 1976
WITH THE RELEASE of A Trick Of The Tail Genesis demonstrated that, on record at least, they could carry on at the same degree of competence ...

Jethro Tull: Too Old To Rock 'n' Roll: Too Young To Die! (Chrysalis)
Review by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, May 1976
ROMANTICISING THE WORKING LAD as a cult hero is a popular theme with rock musicians. They have oft flirted with, or observed at close hand, the ...

Gentle Giant
Report and Interview by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, May 1976
Well, we've had the wheel, sliced bread, the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and now Big Phil Sutcliffe's copped the newie...Yep, it's Gentle Giant's eighth album. ...

Gentle Giant: Giant Steps
Interview by Harry Doherty, Melody Maker, May 1976
RETURNING HOME TO England has always been a bit of a comedown for Gentle ...

Supertramp On a Bum Trip
Interview by Steven Rosen, Sounds, May 1976
SUPERTRAMP HORNMAN and funnyman John Helliwell gazed longingly out the A&M Records publicity office window at the burgundy Dino Ferrari. ...

Genesis: Supper Is Definitely Ready
Report and Interview by Barbara Charone, Sounds, May 1976
Thursday April ...

Jon Anderson's Fairy Tales
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, June 1976
A SPACESHIP, perhaps better described as an earth ship, forms the basis of a bizarre and fantastic story that is the central theme of Jon Anderson's ...

Genesis: Hammersmith Odeon, London
Live Review by Barbara Charone, Sounds, June 1976
Genesisteria sweeps city – hundreds injured in trick of the tail overdose – five night musical orgy destroys London – thousands converted to Genesis religious sect ...

Genesis: Hammersmith Odeon, London
Live Review by Miles, NME, June 1976
IF YOU take the trouble to embroider "Genesis" in fancy letters on the back of your pressed denim jacket, or if you are prepared to pay ...

Genesis: Hammersmith Odeon, London
Live Review by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, June 1976
SO MUCH was happening on stage during the first sensational concert by Genesis at Odeon Hammersmith on Wednesday last week, that one needed stereoscopic earsight to ...

Yamashta, Winwood, Shrieve: Go (Island)
Review by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, June 1976
THE THEORY of it could be a blueprint for the grossmost excess of pretentious rock – a fusion of cultures through music yet, Japanese, German, British, ...

Yes: The Biggest Gig In The Entire History Of The World
Report by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, June 1976
Bicentennialand and rock's favourite vegetarians take Phil Sutcliffe by storm. ...

Tangerine Dream: Royal Albert Hall, London
Live Review by Miles, NME, June 1976
T-DREAM HAVE BEEN described as everything from 'the most advanced development of progressive rock' to 'electronic muzak'. The band generates controversy probably because people are bewildered ...

The Trick of the Tale: Phil Collins Talks
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, July 1976
PHIL COLLINS IS A spry, restless man with seemingly limitless amounts of energy and intense drive. It is this drive that has made him one of ...

ELP: The Show That Never Ends?
Report by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, August 1976
WHATEVER happened to ELP? One of Britain's most successful and popular bands has been surrounded by a wall of silence as impenetrable as the Kremlin since ...

Barclay James Harvest: Barclay Bank On The Future
Interview by Harry Doherty, Melody Maker, October 1976
BARCLAY JAMES HARVEST: 'If you want to be a musician and play the type of music you want – you've gotta cruise.' ...

Steve Hillage: Watch Out There's A Concept About
Interview by Mick Brown, Sounds, October 1976
IT WAS instant karma out to get me. The sound of one hand clapping – so fast you can't even hear it. We had been talking ...

National Health: Newcastle University
Live Review by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, October 1976
WATCHING rock and roll these last few weeks I just feel better and better. The long standing groan about the dearth of new bands and new ...

Mike Oldfield: Boxed (Virgin) *****
Review by Mick Brown, Sounds, November 1976
ONE LAVISHLY illustrated and highly informative booklet, four albums, two hours 40 minutes plus of music – Boxed is the almost complete Mike ...

National Health Warning: Touring Can Make You Broke
Report and Interview by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, November 1976
AFTER National Health's soundcheck singer Amanda Parsons accosted keyboardist Dave Stewart thusly: "Have you got any money? It cost us £16 in petrol to get up ...

Barclay James Harvest: Octoberon
Review by Harry Doherty, Melody Maker, November 1976
I GET the impression from this new BJH album that the band were in a particularly mellow mood when they finally got around to recording it ...

Genesis: Wind & Wuthering (Charisma) *****
Review by Barbara Charone, Sounds, December 1976
FIRST IMPRESSIONS: Too much to digest on one listening. Overall album sound even better than A Trick Of The Tail. Less immediate but more substantial than ...

Genesis: Wuthering Heights
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, December 1976
THE PUBLIC has a strange image of rock and roll musicians. Most imagine them to be public school educated, with a passionate dedication to the pursuit ...

Gentle Giant: Live — Playing The Fool (Chrysalis)****
Review by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, January 1977
YES, FOR the first time on record you too can hear Gentle Giant play a bum note! In fact not one but several, together with a ...

Jethro Tull: City Hall, Newcastle
Live Review by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, February 1977
YOU KNOW how supergroups are supposed to open the show with the '1812 Overture' complete with real facsimile nineteenth-century Muscovite cannon and a battallion of the ...

Rush: A Canadian Rush
Interview by Deborah Frost, Circus, February 1977
A SUBTERRANEAN VOICE growls across the phone wires, hesitates, and growls again – this time more softly. Canadian telephone service might be different, but it's not ...

Genesis, Southern Style
Report and Interview by Barbara Charone, Sounds, March 1977
ON THE ROAD. Again. The Rainbow seems like years ago. Yesterday they had a rare day off in New Orleans, arriving at the Marie Antoinette Inn ...

Look At Me Now: The Electric Light Orchestra
Report and Interview by Harry Doherty, Melody Maker, April 1977
ELO: MORE than a classical gas. "It’s not classical rock. It never has been, but when it started, it needed a name. It had to be ...

Peter Gabriel: The Lamb Stands Up
Interview by Barbara Charone, Sounds, April 1977
'Because Genesis are now part of the English establishment I felt I'd been seen in context with them. But the better the album does the better ...

Yes: Going For The One
Review by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, June 1977
GO ON, GUESS how the first Yes album for three years begins. I tell you, you haven't got a hope. ...

The $2m Show That Never Ends: Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Report and Interview by Barbara Charone, Sounds, July 1977
KEITH EMERSON sits in a Detroit French restaurant wearing traditional black leather trousers and a very large grin. He’s telling a reporter from Rolling Stone that ...

Pink Floyd: Madison Square Garden, NYC
Live Review by Miles, NME, July 1977
THE FLOYD sure picked a fine week to appear in New York. Not only was it the eve of July 4th, but also it was the ...

Supertramp
Interview by Tony Stewart, NME, August 1977
Whaaat? we hear you gasp. Supertramp? Guess you thought the punks had it all sewn up, huh? Well, you ain't heard nothin' yet. The war of ...

Gentle Giant: The Missing Piece
Review by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, August 1977
GENTLE GIANT crave recognition in their homeland with a longing which at times borders on the pathetic. For all their success in the States and Europe, ...

Steve Hillage: Motivation Radio
Review by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, October 1977
When a guy sings to you "we've all been born together in this special place and time to raise the world," where does your humble reviewer ...

Enid: Why Are These Men Facing The Wrong Way?
Interview by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, December 1977
IT'S WELL over a year now since I last annexed a piece of this publication to warn you that the Enid, oddball neo-classical romancers, were about ...

Bill Bruford: Your Friendly Neighbourhood Rock Star
Interview by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, February 1978
"I FEEL sometimes as though they're about to stick my head on a spike and display it outside the Tower Of London for people to hurl ...

Yes: Tormato
Review by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, September 1978
"RELEASE, Release!" is one of the most significant chants on this happy musical event. It is the hook-line on the fastest, funkiest, piece of rock 'n' ...

Yes in New York: Swings And Roundabouts
Report and Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, September 1978
"EXCUSE me, but what are you writing?" I'm just making notes about the concert and I'm trying to listen to the piano player. ...

Moody Blues: Yes To The Moodies
Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, September 1978
"I THOUGHT I was God. Then I realised I was just the drummer in a rock 'n' roll band." Graeme Edge and Caligula had the same ...

Gentle Giant: Giant For A Day
Review by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, September 1978
THIS GENTLE Giant album could present you with some difficulty and even expense. The problem is that you'll have to set your record player up in ...

Camel: City Hall, Sheffield
Live Review by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, September 1978
A CAMEL Caravan from Canterbury (two down, three across). You couldn't fit the solution into The Times crossword though. It took an hour-and-a-half to play and ...

Barclay James Harvest: XII
Review by Ian Penman, NME, October 1978
POOP GO the wizened wastrels! The starry, clammy curtain rises once again, and here they are, still waiting. ...

National Health: Of Queues And Cures (Charly)
Review by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, May 1979
THE HEALTHY Ones have been through a whole ring-cycle of changes in recent times, with Dave Stewart out and Alan Gowen back in again. We fans ...

The Moody Blues: It's A Wonderful Life
Report and Interview by Chris Welch, Melody Maker, May 1979
The rich are not like you and me, said Fitzgerald. That's right, Hemingway replied: they have more money. Just in time for cocktails, CHRIS WELCH joined ...

Rick Wakeman: Rhapsodies (A&M)***½
Review by Phil Sutcliffe, Sounds, June 1979
A MAN of honour is old Rick. Some three years ago when he was preparing No Earthly Connection he said he would like to do it ...

Supertramp: The Philosopher and the Realist
Interview by Harry Doherty, Melody Maker, June 1979
In Supertramp's first interview for two years, songwriters Roger Hodgson and Rick Davies tell HARRY DOHERTY how their immense success in America has widened the division ...

Mike Oldfield: Boy Genius "Not Broke" Shock
Interview by Karl Dallas, Melody Maker, December 1979
Things haven't been going smoothly for Mike Oldfield. Tours have lost money, expensive gear has been scrapped and he's had a dispute with his label over ...

Pink Floyd: Memorial Sports Arena, Los Angeles
Live Review by Sylvie Simmons, Sounds, February 1980
WELL IT figures, doesn't it? ...

Rush: The Moustache That Conquered The World
Interview by Sylvie Simmons, Sounds, April 1980
SOMEWHERE in America in that black hole known as the Midwest, little bands are slogging their balls off to become big bands, and big bands are ...

Pink Floyd: Floydian Analysis
Discography by Jim Green, Trouser Press, May 1980
PINK FLOYD is pretty weird. And not just the band, but the way they've been viewed by the rock world. ...

Mike Oldfield
Interview by Tim Oakes, International Musician, June 1980
IN MANY WAYS, Mike Oldfield is the perfect artist to officially open the IM & RW Test Bed studio. His whole career was born out of ...

King Crimson: Robert Fripp's Chocolate Cake Discipline
Interview by Richard Grabel, Creem, February 1982
In The Court Of The Crimson King, Phase II ...

Marillion: Bournemouth Winter Gardens
Live Review by Lucy O'Brien, NME, April 1983
THIS HAPPY breed came to town with Black Sabbath and Thin Lizzy emblazoned on the back of their jackets. Patches, denim and undyed hair were de ...

Emerson Lake: Rockin' Dudes Or Art-Rock Mofos?
Interview by Dave DiMartino, Creem, October 1986
IT'S A SPACIOUS rehearsal studio, though not the world's classiest. I am in London, behind the man running the soundboard, watching the three musicians facing us ...

It Bites: Dinosaur Juniors
Interview by Keith Cameron, Sounds, June 1989
HEWN FROM the living rock of their native Cumbria, It Bites are an archaeologist's nightmare. ...

Moody Blues: Step This Away…
Retrospective and Interview by Tom Hibbert, Q, April 1990
Two genial curators greet you in a small town record shop, ready to take you on a journey...from shiny suits and grimy clubs to "concept" albums, ...

Van Der Graaf Generator: Where Are They Now?
Profile by Martin Aston, Q, September 1990
VAN DER GRAAF Generator, one or Britain's vaunted bands from the progressive era known for their unusual sax/organ front line. "Can you try and dig up ...

Concept Albums: A-may-zing!
Overview by Johnny Black, Q, April 1991
Concept albums...What are they? Are they: ...

Mike Oldfield
Interview by Andy Gill, Q, October 1992
THE ENTRANCE to the grounds is classic old Hollywood style, with a phone you have to call from to get someone to operate the remote-controlled wrought-iron ...

Mike Oldfield: Tubular Bells II
Review by Mat Snow, Q, October 1992
IN 1973, THE 49-minute progressive-rock classic Tubular Bells not only seeded the Virgin empire by selling 16 million copies but also set a benchmark of acclaim ...

AUDIO: Genesis - The Phil Collins Years (2000)
Interview by Johnny Black, Rock's Backpages Audio, September 2000
Follow You, Follow Me: Johnny Black hears from Phil Collins, Mike Rutherford and Tony Banks about Phil's joining, becoming front man, and his ...

Ring Out The Old . . .
Retrospective by Joel McIver, Record Collector, Spring 2000
EVERYONE KNOWS the haunting opening melody of Tubular Bells, but it means different things to different people. If you're in your 40s or over, you might ...

Emerson Lake & Palmer
Retrospective and Interview by Johnny Black, Mojo, March 2001
QUESTION: HOW DO EMERSON, LAKE AND PALMER change A light bulb? A: They don't. Drummer Carl Palmer's personal karate instructor holds the bulb steady while 63 ...

Pink Floyd
Retrospective and Interview by Johnny Black, Mojo, November 2001
IT CAN ONLY HAVE BEEN WITH A certain sense of foreboding that Dave Gilmour officially joined Pink Floyd on the first day of January 1968. ...

David Gilmour
Interview by Daryl Easlea, Record Collector, March 2003
ROCK HISTORIANS HAVE a problem with David Gilmour because he is, well, so very balanced. Displaying little of the madness or angst of Pink Floyds major ...

Marillion: An Interview With Pete Trewavas
Interview by Steven Ward, popmatters.com, June 2003
MARILLION MAY BE the best-kept secret in rock. Formed in London in 1981, Marillion started out like any other young band. The band members, including vocalist ...

No One Knew What They Looked Like: Pink Floyd and the Press
Retrospective by Chris Charlesworth, Q, 2004
THE BOX ARRIVED in Melody Maker’s offices in December 1970, just in time for Christmas, addressed to Michael Watts. It was a sturdily constructed hardwood cube, ...

Life After Roger: Pink Floyd
Retrospective and Interview by Phil Sutcliffe, Q, September 2004
UNTIL AUTUMN 1986, Pink Floyd was the invisible band. Their fame and fortune huge, their individual members anonymous. The arrangement always looked a perfect fit for ...

Juicy Lucy: The Archer, Jesmond, 16 May 2005
Live Review by Rahul Shrivastava, bbc.co.uk, May 2005
HOW WOULD you describe the music of Juicy Lucy to the uninitiated? Progressive-jazzy-blues? Psychedelic-blues-rock? Or even "cheeky blues" perhaps, as some punters have ...

Van Der Graaf Generator: Royal Festival Hall, London
Live Review by Nick Hasted, The Independent, May 2005
WHEN THE FOUR core members of this almost-forgotten prog-rock band start a gig for the first time in 29 years, a joyous roar bounces round the ...

Muse: Black Holes and Revelations
Review by Stephen Dalton, The Times, June 2006
COMPARED TO the mighty cosmic thunder of Muse, the undernourished hipsters of the current Britrock scene sound like puny little insects. Matt Bellamy, Chris Wolstenholme and ...

Peter Hammill
Retrospective and Interview by Mike Barnes, The Wire, March 2007
"I DIDN'T HAVE white tunnels, but I did have the feeling that if I got too tired, which at a certain point might have been an ...